eBay.com USA International shipping new system to be launched

[pocomocomputing]

eBay to Launch Brand New Export Program in the US

http://www.ecommercebytes.com/cab/abn/y12/m08/i23/s02 

Hmm, with the $20 import limit for Canadians, the new program would seem to force collection of duties and HST on items that would often get through without being collected.

So the new eBay program would seem be a PITA for Canadian buyers from the USA. 

It is an opt in to join. It is for USA and for other eBay sites in the future. 

How would this affect Canadian Sellers listing on eBay.com? From a Canadian seller to a Canadian buyer but it would look like an International shipment in the eBay listing and a Canadian Seller to a USA buyer looks like a domestic shipping. 

More interference in how to sell on eBay. More potential for mistakes by eBay. It seems to make selling more complicated than easier to me. 

Run by Pitney Bowes in the USA. dpmicro will love that ...

[westernstargifts]

I hope they don't ever impose the global shipping on us.  I would rather ship my own products even if I do get the odd buyer that causes problems.

Although I do carry the same lines of products that I began with sales have always been good until the last couple of months.  I have also added new lines that I did not have before and have more to list if I ever have time to take all of the pictures.

I read on auctionbytes that Omniture was supposed to be accurate as of Nov. 15.  I haven't heard anything since that verifies that but my sales are way down from last year and reflect the drop in views.

[mygamedealer]

I could not agree more.

[i*m-still-here]

I've had 2 run-ins with it and both have been bizarre.

I don't think it can catch on.

The sellers using it aren't even aware that the buyers are getting billed extra by P-B and/or how much.

That is, a seller might bill $3 for shipping but the buyer gets a bill for $23.

I've learned that it's possible to see when it's being used for items over $20 because there is a notification on the listing about import fees or something like that.

How on earth does shipping items to some P-B hub where they tack on an extra $10 or so plus import taxes for all items over $20 make sense for anyone but P-B?

[peelman1506]

I just had my first and not very nice experience with GSP. I bid on a camera lens on eBay.ca for a total of $620 plus the shipping was $19.99 USPS. Everything was fine as I was the highest bit for quite some time. Then I receive a text on my phone from eBay regarding my bid, I open the message and see my bid plus $94 import charge. I freak because that wasn't disclosed before. I call CS and they agree with what I'm saying. The same item on .com shows the import charge but on .ca it does not show. E bay CS tells me to work out a buy now with the seller, needless to say the vendor wasn't impressed thinking I'm tying to get out of my bid.

My question is a two part one:

1) what happens if the vendor doesn't disclose that they signed for the GSP as it doesn't show in their add. I did ask a vendor if they belong and the answer was oh yeah I do. Can the buyer reject their bid?.

2) I know this is going to happen, I buy and item and pay the GSP then USP delivers but wants to charge brokerage fee...

[tobyshitzu]

a $600 camera is where it makes perfect sense to use the global shipping program.  The $90 is just the same tax + $10 (at least) you'd pay on arrival in Canada anyway.  Not many americans were going to send that first class international so this is a case where the global program makes it cheaper

How do you "know" that the seller will ship direct so you end up billed?  it doesn't make any sense at all being the seller would end up out of pocket more to mail it directly here then to the fulfillment center in the usa.

[peelman1506]

Yes it makes sense for a seller, but when I id on a item that doesn't show GSP as I bid at the time isn't right. I've purchased items in the past that have been delivered by USPS without brokerage fees. What I paid was the bis and shipping, that's it. Maybe I was lucky as some suggested, I think Kijiji is the better option to shop now.

[i*m-still-here]

 needless to say the vendor wasn't impressed thinking I'm tying to get out of my bid.

My question is a two part one:

1) what happens if the vendor doesn't disclose that they signed for the GSP as it doesn't show in their add. I did ask a vendor if they belong and the answer was oh yeah I do. Can the buyer reject their bid?.

2) I know this is going to happen, I buy and item and pay the GSP then USP delivers but wants to charge brokerage fee...

 needless to say the vendor wasn't impressed thinking I'm tying to get out of my bid.

One big problem with the program is that the sellers aren't aware of what the buyers are seeing.

For example, this seller  only sees that the buyer was billed a reasonable $9.99 (not $19.99) for shipping.

The buyer, on the other hand, sees $19.99 plus $94 in this case.

I think you've tried already, but again; Politely make the seller aware of what you are being asked to pay. Maybe they'll opt out of the program once aware of the buyer's experience with it.

I don't know what "right" or "wrong' is with these Pitney-Bowes relay purchases.

Paying import taxes etc. is hit and miss in real life, and knowing that you're getting hit ahead of time is no fun at all  :).

It's just so obvious that no buyer is going to be happy with these transactions so why even go there?  It's just asking for trouble.

Some will not agree with this, I'd ask the seller to cancel the transaction and do a BIN for the agreed upon amount and ship the normal way.

If the seller will not do that, then you have to decide if you're willing to pay an extra $100 up front for the camera.

Is it worth that to you?

You agreed to pay $639.99 for the item in total knowing that you might have to pay more to the PO when it arrived, and not $734.99 up front.

I do think if a buyer looks very closely ahead of time that the import taxes do show up, but since the program is so unusual it's very easy to miss.

It's just kind of wonky situation and the bottom line is that no one can force you to fork out an extra $100 prior to receiving your item.

I don't know if that is "right" or "wrong" or whatever, but it is the real world.

[peelman1506]

Im still here, thanks for your understanding. I think that you'll find that vendors will agree that GSP is a very good tool for exporting sale, that they ship the sold item off to P&B and not have to worry about the aftermath, I get that. BUT eBay.com and eBay.ca are not necessarily on the same page. As for the buyer, I will defiantly look local now before checking eBay. Tell you what though, If I buy and item on the .ca site and there's no GSP disclosure it's going back.

[i*m-still-here]

Well, I guess its common sense.  The P-B relay system is GawDAwfuL for Canadians and if we refuse to use it, then it will go away eventually......... :).

[i*m-still-here]

I think this is interesting.  You might too.

Item # 181072697264 uses the P-B relay system for shipping.

You can go to "Shipping and Payments" and scroll through the various countries and see the import charges which reflect that countries taxes and duties for the item.

When you buy this way you make one payment but it shows as two on paypal.

One is to the seller, and for this item I'm guessing it would be about $59 (item cost plus the seller's fee to ship to the P-B hub).

The other is directly to P-B for about $10 plus import fees.

[i*m-still-here]

It's interesting that items under $20 to Canada have import charges.

So, if you buy an item for $10 and the seller charges $3 for shipping, you get billed $24.10 and that includes P-B's standard fee plus over $3 for import charges?????

[soundcomputer]

Seems to be total BS to me!  It's forcing buyers to pay duties right away, when sometimes things get through without having to pay.  I am always ready and willing to pay, but I don't always have to.  This makes it mandatory every time. AND, they have a brokerage fee on top of it!

What a racket!

[watch_boy]

I for one will be closing my Ebay account if this is made mandatory, it isn’t the job of the seller to collect Canadian taxes. Does Ebay really think that all of these sellers are going to submit the tax that they collect? How is Revenue Canada going to know who is collecting these outrageous fees? One auction I looked at, the fees were over 20%!!! That is obscene! I only pay 5% here in Alberta. The insane thing is NO ONE at Ebay or Paypal customer service had a clue what I was calling them about.

[pjcdn2005]

I for one will be closing my Ebay account if this is made mandatory, it isn’t the job of the seller to collect Canadian taxes. Does Ebay really think that all of these sellers are going to submit the tax that they collect? How is Revenue Canada going to know who is collecting these outrageous fees? One auction I looked at, the fees were over 20%!!! That is obscene! I only pay 5% here in Alberta. The insane thing is NO ONE at Ebay or Paypal customer service had a clue what I was calling them about.

The sellers do not get that money, it goes either directly to Pitney Bowes who is managing the program or to ebay who then gives it to PB

[pierrelebel]

"I only pay 5% here in Alberta"

That is correct and the Pitney-Bowes system will only charge you 5% tax if applicable (in addition to shipping and handling of course).

That 5% tax is remitted by Pitney-Bowes to the Canadian federal government, exactly as many other American companies registered with the Canadian government to collect GST/HST on shipments to Canada.

Canadians buying from many large American online retailers (LL Bean for example) have been experiencing the same situation for decades: the retailers charge the Canadian consumption tax (GST/HST) based on the province of the buyer and remit the tax received from the buyer to the Canadian government.  It speeds up the process at the border and the buyer receives faster service. 

I am not suggesting that the service offered by Pitney-Bowes is of value to Canadian buyers, simply explaining the process.

[gotwhatchuneed]

I'd open all my NEW items I was selling, use em for an hour and clearly state in my listing I had used it for 1 hour so legally it was a used item and bypass alot of this crap. Alot less tax and duty etc. on second hand items.

[pierrelebel]

" Alot less tax and duty etc. on second hand items."

That is incorrect.

The rate of tax (GST/HST) is determined by the selling price of the item (or fair market value) and your province of residence and has nothing to do with being used or new.

A $100 cellphone or dress or collector coin or box full of electronic games or music or movies will be charged to same GST or HST, regardless if used or new.

If you are a seller, I frankly do not understand why you would lower the value of your goods by using them before selling them.